


'Tis the Season

by indigo_inks



Category: Original Work
Genre: Autumn, Awkward Flirting, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-11-07 17:33:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20821139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/indigo_inks/pseuds/indigo_inks
Summary: He started with one pumpkin…or so Jonathanthought. He couldn’t be one-hundred percent certain, though – thiswashigh pumpkin season, after all, and the farm store was busy every day.Then he came back and bought three more pumpkins. Two days later, he bought five more, at which point he’d needed Jonathan to help him carry his purchases to his car.





	'Tis the Season

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Lunarium](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunarium/gifts).

He started with one pumpkin…or so Jonathan _thought_. He couldn’t be one-hundred percent certain, though – this _was_ high pumpkin season, after all, and the farm store was busy every day.

Then he came back and bought three more pumpkins. Two days later, he bought five more, at which point he’d needed Jonathan to help him carry his purchases to his car.

“These’ll be really great for the office. Liven up the desks and all. Everyone gets one, you know?” the man was saying as they piled the pumpkins into the trunk. He talked fast, and he rambled. “You really do have the best pumpkins, Mister, uh…”

“Jonathan,” supplied Jonathan politely.

“Alex,” the man – Alex – said, holding out a hand to shake.

Jonathan shook it with an easy smile. Alex was quite handsome (albeit in a high-strung, neurotic fashion). He had especially beautiful eyes.

After that, Jonathan started to _really_ notice when Alex of the beautiful eyes came around the farm store. He was coming daily to buy pumpkins, sometimes as few as two, sometimes as many as twenty. Jonathan couldn’t fathom what he’d need so many pumpkins for, but he figured it wasn’t his place to judge.

Halloween passed, and Thanksgiving approached. Alex had bought so many pumpkins that the farm had completely run out, and Jonathan had had to purchase additional stock from other farms out-of-state just to make it through the end of high pumpkin season.

And _that_, of course, meant a markup. Yet in spite of the price hike, Alex kept right on buying (and talking a lot at Jonathan about nothing in particular while he did it).

This made Jonathan feel kind of bad. Beautiful eyes notwithstanding, he didn’t like gouging a customer.

Today, it was seven pumpkins. As Jonathan rang Alex up at the register, he said, “Look, uh, you’re a loyal customer, Alex, and I do appreciate that, really I do, but I thought you should know: Our stock has been…shall we say _low_ for a while, and I’ve had to raise prices to compensate. You’d get a better deal on pumpkins at the Meyers Bros. farm across the county line.”

“I…oh. I see. Thanks for telling me.” Alex looked weirdly put out as he paid.

_Strange,_ Jonathan thought, _who wouldn’t want to pay less?_ Still, it was the honorable thing to do; he had no regrets…except…

…except he’d rather miss Alex and his beautiful eyes.

November became December, and Alex didn’t come back to the farm store. Jonathan wasn’t surprised, but he did feel vaguely disappointed when each day ended and he closed up the store without having seen him.

Then, the Christmas Eve rush, the last day the farm store would be open until the next calendar year. A flurry of last-minute sales – pies and fruitcakes, mostly, plus the occasional bespoke item to be given as a gift – and a seemingly never ending line in front of the register.

And the very last person in that line…was _Alex_ (whose eyes were even more beautiful than Jonathan had remembered).

“We’re fresh out of pumpkins, sorry,” Jonathan said. He knew he was grinning like an idiot.

“Oh, uh, I’m not here for that,” Alex said, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. “I thought, uh…I thought…maybeIcouldbuyyouacoffee?” he said in a rush.

“You want to buy me a coffee?” Jonathan repeated, surprised.

“Yeah. Or maybe dinner, since it’s getting kind of late, and I totally understand if you don’t want anything caffeinated after 6 PM—”

“Alex, are you asking me out on a date?”

Alex flushed crimson. It was adorable. And good grief but his eyes were beautiful.

Jonathan didn’t hesitate. “Yeah, okay. I need to close up the store, so you’ll have to wait a bit, but…”

“Not a problem. I don’t have anywhere to be,” Alex said. His face was a mixture of relief and delight.

Well, well, well. Who’d have thought? The year might have been coming to a close, but Jonathan knew that something wonderful between himself and Alex was just beginning.


End file.
